


Mask of the Hunter

by Subtlety Lost (fishstic)



Series: The Masks We Show (And What They Hide) [1]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, F/F, F/M, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Monster Hunters, Multi, Not Cheating, Shapeshifter Pharah, Shapeshifter lena, Vampire Gerard, Vampire Widowmaker, Witch Mercy, Witch Sombra, it's polyamory, knight reinhardt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-13
Updated: 2017-11-13
Packaged: 2019-02-01 16:02:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,932
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12708270
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fishstic/pseuds/Subtlety%20Lost
Summary: Masquerade parties have always been some of Amélie's favorite parties to attend. The masks allowing her to hide who she was, not in a deceptive way, but in a way that allowed her a confidence she had lost. She never really thought much of herself until she became a Hunter, seeking out monsters and putting an end to them. It gave her life some purpose after she was unceremoniously cut from the ballet in the past.After marrying a vampire, Comte Gérard Lacroix, masquerades became Amélie's favorite kind of party to host. She enjoyed seeing the kinds of people that would show up to them (and the kind of monsters that would arrive, knowing that a masquerade would be the only time they'd be welcomed at any kind of event). Though externally she enjoyed seeing who would show up, internally she was often worried about which party would bring the hunters--wanting to end her and her husband--to her door.She never suspected that when the hunter did arrive, it wouldn't be because of herorher husband at all.





	Mask of the Hunter

In the past, Amélie attended more masquerade parties than she could count. They were always an interesting place to be, she knew. High society, tending upon high exclusivity too. It made her feel better about herself to be able to hide behind masks of glitter and gold, dresses of lace and satin.

In the past, Amélie had been average at best. A ballet dancer, an entertainer. She'd never really wanted or needed to be anything else until she was cut from the ballet because she refused to let the new producer bully her into sleeping with him. At the time, there wasn't a lot else she could do with her time. The masquerades allowed her to hide her shame, to hide herself. She needn't worry about being the disgraced dancer, cut for having the audacity to stand up for herself. She was simply, Amélie. That was what mattered.

In the past, Amélie had been given an offer. A chance to take on the thrill of the chase, to do something with her life. A chance to hunt monsters.

In the past, Amélie had readily accepted this offer.

In the past, Amélie would have given anything to feel useful.

In the past, Amélie had been human.

In the past, she'd killed many monsters. Werewolves, vampires, terrors that lurked in the woods with only a vague shape about them. She'd killed, and she'd enjoyed it. Never really considering that these creatures had lives and probably families of their own. Never worrying about the consequences of her actions. She was a hunter, that was what mattered.

In the past, Amélie had met Gérard. Comte Lacroix, who held the most extravagant masquerade parties that Amélie had ever had the pleasure of attending.

In the past, Comte Lacriox had charmed Amélie. Had made her feel loved, special. Had told her she was the most beautiful woman on the planet. Had kissed her softly and gently. Had held her close. Had enchanted her heart, made her remember what it truly meant to mean something to someone else.

In the past, Amélie hadn't known that Comte Lacroix was a vampire himself.

In the past, it would have mattered. When Amélie found out, she did not feel betrayed. She did not accuse him of tricking her, or using vampiric magic against her, or doing anything wrong to her. She knew that she had fallen in love with him. She had killed enough vampires in the past to understand the feeling of being charmed against your will. She knew this was not the case. Gérard had charmed her, it was true, but he'd have done it just as well if he'd been mortal as he had as a vampire. He'd charmed her with good looks, personality, and (perhaps most importantly) the fact that he genuinely cared about her.

In the past, Amélie had never realized that 'monsters' were people too.

But that was all in the past, now Comtessa Amélie Lacroix was happily married to the vampire that had charmed her so thoroughly, and she was more picky about the monsters she'd agree to hunt.

\--

Amélie still turned heads when she walked into the masquerades. Even after hosting them for many years herself. She had never really liked looking at herself before, now she wished she'd looked more. Perhaps then she might have understood what it was about her that had captivated Gérard so thoroughly, so many years ago. She smiled as she walked out onto the landing at the top of the stairs and looked down upon the guests that were arriving to her party. There were many names she'd recognized and just as many that she knew nothing about. This was fine by her, she'd have her mage-spy friend Sombra find out what she wished to know about them later on. After the party, perhaps. When it was clear to her whether or not she'd be able to charm the information out of them through polite conversation.

It was shaping up to be an interesting night, she spotted her husband downstairs greeting the guests. Gérard was, as usual, somehow better at talking to people. He had said it was a talent and that all she needed to do to get better at it was practice. He'd also said that he wasn't entirely sure why she thought she wasn't good at talking to people. She was, in his words, very good at talking to people. She wasn't sure if he was telling her that because it was true, or because he loved her and wanted her to be confident in herself. (In her mind, she desperately hoped it was because he loved her, sure she wished he wouldn't lie to her about it, but being bad at talking to people would explain why she'd never had many true friends growing up. There was a difference between a real friendship--like the ones she shared with Gérard and Sombra--and the shallow friendship like things that she had grown up with being a member of 'society'.)

There were many intriguing guests at the party tonight, and she hoped she would have time to get to know at least a few of them. She knew by name, that somewhere among the guests was the producer of the ballet. The one that had cut her from the cast when she'd refused to sleep with him. Personally, she hoped she'd get to meet him again. She'd only drain him of a little of his blood, of course, not enough to kill him. Enough to let him know that she still wasn't here for his sexist bullshit. This was what she was thinking when she'd noticed the newest guest arrive.

Amélie stared at the girl as she came into the party. Her hair was probably the fluffiest hair Amélie had ever seen, she couldn't even tell exactly how long it was supposed to be or if it was more brown or black. She was wearing a tattered leather jacket that'd been repaired (rather poorly) with bright orange patches, torn black slacks that appeared to be at least two sizes too big held up by a belt of braided ropes in the colors of the rainbow, and a silver masquerade mask. The mask was the only thing that clued Amélie into the fact that girl was actually supposed to be there. She was out of place and outclassed. Yes, that was obviously the reason Amélie found herself unable to look away from the girl as she came into the chateau.

She noted with some interest that the girl did not divest herself of her jacket once away from the door and in the warmth of the chateau's entrance hall. This was, perhaps, more interesting than the fact that the girl was wearing a jacket at all. The girl turned heads, that was true enough, but it certainly wasn't because of her beauty. Amélie would be lying if she'd said that she did not think the girl was, in fact, beautiful in her own way. It was a different kind of beauty than most society women possessed, but then, it was fairly obvious to her that this girl was not 'society'. She appeared to be a farmer's child, or perhaps a merchant, though she didn't look like she was used to doing much heavy lifting, so perhaps a courier was more likely. What had this girl done to merit an invitation to the masquerade. She'd have to ask, though asking the girl would make it seem like Amélie did not want her there, which for a reason she couldn't quite put words to, couldn't be further from the truth.

Amélie shook her head slightly to clear it and to bring herself back to the present. It wouldn't do to stare at one particular guest for the entire night, no matter how intriguing that guest was or might be. She looked around at her guests for what she guessed was probably the fifth time, surveying them with a trained eye. Of the guests that had already arrived, she knew of one selkie, three witches, a vampire (that wasn't her or Gérard), and what she could only approximate counted as a ghost. (This was, in fact, the first time Amélie had ever seen a ghost in a crowd of people.)

She wasn't all that concerned about the nonhuman guests at her masquerade. She was aware that they weren't here to cause trouble at least not the majority of them. She'd have to have someone, probably Sombra, keep an eye on that ghost though. There wasn't a lot of information at her fingertips about ghosts so she wasn't sure what to expect from one. She'd also have to keep an eye on the selkie as well, well more specifically she'd need to keep an eye on the selkie's cloak. She couldn't let anyone steal or hide it. Amélie could stand a lot of things being done around her, but she couldn't--and wouldn't--stand for someone forcing the selkie to remain on land against her will. She disliked when anyone was forced to do things against their will. Whether or not this made her a hypocrite, as she regularly forced people to do things they did not want to do--ie, let her feed off them--she was unsure (though the answer was probably yes).

She leaned against the banister for a moment longer, deciding on whether or not she should go down to greet some of the guests, when she noticed another person come into the party. This one, she felt she recognized, despite his mask. He was tall, and rather muscular too. Strong, stocky, he looked out of place, and she noted that a few of the nonhuman guests (and even a couple of the human ones) seemed highly uncomfortable when they looked at him. Amélie, too, felt something was just off about him. He didn't particularly stand out among the guests aside from being muscular. He was in a nice outfit, with a flowing black cloak that had a ruby clasp. His mask was that of a deer, which in itself was a bit odd, if Amélie was to be honest. Still, without knowing exactly why he was making so many people uncomfortable, she couldn't ask him to leave, or do much of anything about him being there.

She picked herself up off the banister, to head down to greet the guests, as she was doing so she noticed the girl that had caught her attention earlier was watching her too. Amélie smiled slightly at the girl, who immediately turned away and slipped into the crowd of guests, as though embarrassed that she'd been caught staring. It was honestly probably the cutest thing Amélie had ever seen. She couldn't quite understand what that girl was doing there, but she was willing to be patient in finding out.

She descended the stairs with practiced grace, it was always good to make a nice first impression on her guests, and she knew she was doing just that as she descended the stairs in her outfit. Not a lot of women had the confidence to wear a suit like this one. Though it was formfitting it was much easier to move in than a dress would have been, and perhaps that's why she liked it so much. She'd taken a lot of effort picking out the specifics of the outfit, a nice rich red dress shirt, with a black suit coat that was trimmed in silver and had coattails that went to her knees, black tights, and black knee-high boots with red cuffs. She knew she should have worn slacks, but with her plans, the tights were better. After all, there was no easier way to seduce a man who felt entitled to your body than to show off said body. (Seducing him, was in fact, the easiest way to get him alone. She knew it was a terrible idea to attempt feeding off a man where people could see her.)

This was her plan, she'd get the producer alone then she'd feed off him. It was a simple plan, there were very few ways it could go wrong. She could count them in her head, the first and easiest way being that she might not actually find him at the party even though she knew for sure that he was here. There wasn't a lot she could do with her plan if it turned out that she couldn't locate him. That did not change the fact that she had a plan.

Smiling, she approached Gérard as he was greeting another guest. This guest was rather large, and had a very nice plainly visible even despite the mask, scar on his face. Amélie wasn't aware of who this particular guest was, nor did she honestly care at all. She was more concerned about letting her husband know that she was ready for the party to start.

"Ah, my love," Gérard said when Amélie put a hand on his arm gently. "Have you met Herr Wilhelm?"

"I'm afraid we have not had the pleasure of being acquainted," Amélie replied. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Herr Wilhelm." Though she disliked talking like this to people she really didn't care to know, she knew it was expected. Well, less expected and more required.

"It is an honor to meet you as well, Comtessa," Herr Wilhelm replied. "This is quite a nice party."

It would seem that French was definitely not this man's first language as his vocabulary beyond the customary greetings seemed to be lacking. She did give him credit for trying though, it was more than some guests did. If she knew his first language, she might have offered more of a greeting, more talk, but she did not. In part it made her feel like a terrible host, but then, she couldn't really be expected to know all the languages the different kingdoms spoke, it was quite impossible to keep up with them all. She nodded politely and tugged on Gérards arm slightly.

"Enjoy the party, Herr Wilhelm," Gérard said quietly. "Please."

Herr Wilhem nodded in acknowledgement of that as Amélie pulled Gérard away for a moment.

"Is something wrong, my love?" Gérard asked.

That something must be wrong for her to pull him aside was the first thought in his head made Amélie frown slightly. Though she had to admit when she pulled him aside like this something usually was wrong. "I only wanted to let you know that I am ready for the party to begin. Also to ask what you know about the man in the deer mask."

"My love, do you not recognize him?

Amélie narrowed her eyes slightly. “No, Gérard,” she said pointedly. “That is the point of masquerade masks.”

“Siolí,” Gérard said.

“What is that snake doing here?” Amélie said perhaps a little more harshly than intended.

“Do you not like the man who taught you to be a hunter?” Gérard asked gently.

“The man is a snake,” Amélie replied. “He tried to have me killed.”

Gérard patted her arm sympathetically. “Because I turned you?” he asked quietly.

“Because I wouldn't let him kill a child who had been spotted with a werewolf,” Amélie replied. “The witch made sure, the child was fully human. She thought the werewolf was just a very big dog.”

"He tried to have you killed, for keeping him from killing an innocent civilian?" Gérard seemed almost as angry at the thought as Amélie had been at the action when it had happened.

"He's a snake," Amélie said. "Whatever reason he's here for, cannot possibly be good."

"Do you want me to ask him to leave?" Gérard asked gently.

"No," Amélie said. "Let us see what the night shall bring. If he tries to kill one of our guests, I shall make him regret ever meeting me."

Gérard nodded and smiled slightly. "I noticed that the Oxton girl caught your eye, my love."

"Is that her name?" Amélie mused. "Do you know much about her?"

"No," Gérard admitted. "I know her name is Lena Oxton, that’s all. I met her in the town square a few nights ago and she asked me if I had anything to give her. So I gave her some bread, a bit of money, and an invitation to our masquerade."

“Why bread and money?” Amélie asked. “It seems like an odd thing to give a stranger, even though I know you are kind and it probably made sense at the time.”

“You saw what the girl was wearing,” Gérard stated rather simply.

“You believe her to be an urchin?” Amélie asked.

“She doesn’t appear to have a family," Gérard replied. "I felt like she could benefit from having a little money in her pocket. She was grateful."

Amélie nodded slightly, and smiled. "Every day I find more things to love about you."

"You should find things to love about her," Gérard replied. "She looked like she had an interest in you from what I saw."

Amélie chuckled slightly. "You would encourage your wife to have a lover?"

"You already have Sombra," Gérard pointed out. "What could one more hurt? Besides, you never seem to mind when I seek out other lovers."

"You have some wants that I cannot satisfy," Amélie stated simply, "I would not deny you them just because we're married."

"Then I shouldn't deny you your wants that I can't satisfy," Gérard replied. "Do not worry, my love, I'm sure you can get her to fall for you, without needing to charm her."

Amélie chose not to reply to that as she walked with Gérard to the ballroom. It was going to be a fine night of dancing and being with people, she'd make sure of it, but she had no reason to believe that that girl she'd seen would, in fact, want to be with her. It was likely a simple crush that the girl held, attributed easily to the fact that Amélie was rather beautiful. She smiled to herself as she saw people turn to watch as she and Gérard walked into the ballroom. The band was playing quite well, some sort of German waltz it sounded like, she'd probably need to ask later exactly what kind. She need not seem stupid if someone were to ask her about the music.

She was happy to let Gérard take care of most of the talking to people, relagating herself to one side so she could watch over the guests, hoping to pick out the tells that would indicate exactly which guest was which so that she might be able to better pick who to talk to.

At first it was simple, she talked to the people who had attended the masquerade before. One of them, a witch with a shapeshifter girlfriend, introduced herself again, just like she did at every party. She called herself Angela, a healer or so she claimed.

Angela was interested in the possible application of vampire blood in healing potions. In Amélie's opinion this was an easy way to mistakenly create an epidemic of untrained and unsuspecting vampires running around villages. A disaster not only for whoever happened to accidentally get turned in such a manner, but for vampires everywhere, and also for Angela who despite her good intentions would be responsible for the outbreak.

"I'm sorry," Amélie said, again, "but despite what you think, I'm fairly certain vampiric blood does not have healing properties. I'm not sure what about us exactly stops the aging process, what makes us heal faster than mortals, but it's not our blood. The only thing our blood does is spread vampirism to other beings. You're not going to make a healing potion out of that, all you'll end up with is a potion of vampirism or something along those lines. I will not be helping you with it."

Angela was kind, it seemed, she always apologized for her continued pushing on the matter. Tonight though, Amélie was curious as to why Angela kept asking.

"What about us is it that you find so fascinating anyway?" Amélie asked.

"You never die," Angela replied simply, before turning and disappearing back into the crowd of guests to find her girlfriend.

"We never die," Amélie repeated quietly. Why was the witch so concerned about not dying? As far as Amélie had been aware, the witch never aged either. For her, it seemed like a curse, perhaps that's what was so interesting about vampires to the witch, they lived with their immortality as though they felt it a gift. Amélie certainly felt gifted that she'd get to live forever with her husband.

Sombra once explained that witches are effectively immortal as a cursed side-effect of their magic. It's like this for all witches, Sombra had said, they never age and never die, but a great many things can kill them. For Sombra, this was the reason she almost never left the chateau after Amélie had allowed her to move in.

Amélie stared at the spot where Angela had drifted back into the crowd for a moment, then went back to talking to guests. Seeking out, though not obviously, the producer of her ballet. It didn't take her long to find who she was looking for despite the masks that hid everyone's faces

"If it isn't the lovely lady Amélie," a familiar voice said beside her, as she felt a hand on her waist. "Might I have a dance?"

"You certainly may have a dance," Amélie replied. Though internally all she really wished to give the her former producer was a swift kick between the legs. "It would be an honor."

"Now see here," he said quietly, "if you'd been this nice before, maybe you'd still be with the ballet."

Had he been drinking already? It certainly smelled like it. Poor man didn't even seem to realize he was talking to a woman who hadn't aged in nearly a decade. "Perhaps," she replied simply. "Perhaps you're expecting more than just a dance."

"Perhaps," he replied, pulling her close.

Over his shoulder she noticed Gérard giving him an angry glare, but she mouthed to him 'I have a plan, do not interfere.'

Gérard nodded slightly though Amélie could see that he was very angry. Sometimes she believed that he was too overprotective of her, but at this point, it made her feel safe. She loved that he seemed willing to kill this man if it'd keep her safe. Even loving that and knowing that, she was still a little bothered that he felt she needed him to take care of her in any way. She was stronger than that. She could not blame him for wanting to take care of her, though. There had, in the past during the first year or two that they were married, been several hunters that had came to them in attempts to take their lives. It was only right that he'd be worried about her, she still wasn't entirely sure how people didn't know she was a vampire just from looking at her.

Internally, she groaned as the producer pulled her into the dance. If she were forced, she might admit that he actually was a fairly decent dancer. That did not change that he was a vile little man who would attempt to take whatever he wanted from her and could not keep his hands from wandering even if she threatened to cut them off. Dancing with him, especially a waltz where his hand already was on her waist, was the last thing she'd actually wanted to do. It was necessary though. She couldn't let on that she had any reason to talk to him or he'd get suspicious and she'd lose her chance for revenge.

During the dance, she felt his hand on the waistband of her tights and decided that the time was right for her plan. She smiled slightly and leaned over, whispering gently in his ear, "Perhaps you would like to take this somewhere a little more private?"

"You have changed," he replied, leaning up to kiss her. "I like it."

Amélie forced herself not to bite his tongue when he kissed her. That level of restraint was actually rather hard to manage if she were honest, everything about this man who she hadn't seen in years made her feel rather dizzy, made it hard for her to think about anything other than how much she wanted him dead. Perhaps, if she were to ask Gérard about it, he might tell her whether or not this was the feeling he meant when he talked about how certain kinds people draw out a 'bloodlust' in a vampire. (This could also explain why Gérard was still glaring daggers at the back of his head even though Amélie had told him she had everything under control.)   

"Let's go somewhere more private," he said. "Somewhere with a bed, would be very nice."

"Are you that tired already?" Amélie asked. "Perhaps you're losing your edge."

"You know very well that's not what I mean," he stated, pulling her closer.

"Then allow me to lead the way," she replied, pulling away from him carefully. Too much resistance, obvious or not, and he'd take things too far, force a reaction from Gérard or herself that both of them would regret. Too little resistance and he'd realize something was wrong with the situation. He'd surely figure out that a woman who'd refused him so much so before that she'd stolen a sword off a passing adventurer to keep herself safe from him, wouldn't change her mind so easily. She needed to get this over with, and quickly, because she was starting to believe he'd try to force things more than he already was, and with no actual weapon at hand, the only way she'd be able to prevent that would be if she incapacitated him first.

She led him to a guest bedroom at a far side of the chateau. She knew Sombra well enough to know that bedroom was near enough to whatever Sombra was doing at the time, that if needed Amélie could scream and she'd be there. This was also an essential part of her plan, she needed Sombra to be there, to be ready in case something went wrong.

"I hope the room is to your liking," Amélie said quietly.

He smiled as he led Amélie over to the bed, and attempted to force her down onto it first.

"Aren't we the impatient one," Amélie muttered, though she knew if she didn't take her chance soon, she'd end up in a nasty situation where the control was no longer in her hands. She took the situation into her hands again, leaning up and forcing him back slightly, so that she was no longer having to hold herself off the bed. She knew if he got her down, she wouldn't be able to fight him off at all. It would be end of the line for her plan. She wanted nothing more than to make sure he couldn't do anything to her now. This required her to maintain control. She bit her lip slightly, hoping that she'd be able to keep him from hurting her, the entire plan was a risk. In all honesty, if she'd taken time to actuall think about it before deciding to do it, she'd have never made the decision in the first place.

"Perhaps I am impatient," he replied, "but you have kept me waiting for too long. I dispise when people play hard to get."

Amélie nodded slightly. She knew that already. It was now or never, his hands were on her shoulders, she could only handle having him near her for so long before she'd finally just snap and either kill him or attempt to flee the room. She leaned over carefully, and nuzzled her nose against his neck, then before he had time to process what she was doing, she bit down on him, hard.

She tasted his blood, and almost pulled away immediately. She'd drank a hundred different kinds of blood in the ten years she'd been married to Gérard, but she had never tasted one that was as terrible as this man's. She kept it up for only a few moments, until he went limp in her arms, and then she pulled her mouth away, She honestly should have killed him, it would save herself and the rest of the world an awful lot of trouble, but she had no desire (at least none that she would act upon) to kill a man at her party. Perhaps, another time, she'd put her hunter training to good use and kill him in his own house.

When she had finished, she dumped him rather unceremoniously on the bed and walked out of the room. It would do her no good to stay in the room with him, the temptation to just go ahead and kill him would be too great. 

She knocked on a few doors nearby until Sombra finally answered one of them. 

"What?" Sombra asked. "Shouldn't you be at your fancy party?"

"Is that really any way to greet your best friend?" Amélie replied.

"You're supposed to be at the party," Sombra repeated.

Amélie narrowed her eyes at Sombra. "What's so important at the party that I need to be there?"

"I don't have time to explain it to you," Sombra replied. "I invited a friend who needs you to be at the party. Trust me, both of you benefit from this, more than I do at least. Go back to the party, I'll deal with the unwanted guest in that bedroom for you."

Amélie smiled and chuckled slightly. "I don't know what's gotten into you tonight, but whatever, or whoever, is at the party had better be worth your strange behavior."

"And if it's not?" Sombra challenged. "It will be though."

"If it's not, then there may have to be some... punishment," Amélie replied, her eyes sparkling slightly. She didn't quite really care about how weirdly Sombra was behaving, but this whole thing struck her as odd. Still, she could never pass up an opportunity to tease Sombra about her willingness to let Amélie tie her up.

"Oh no, punishment," Sombra replied sarcastically, "whatever would I do? You gonna like, tie me up or something? Hit me? Or are you in more of a bitey mood today?"

"I can think of plenty of ways to punish you, Sombra," Amélie replied.

"So I've noticed," Sombra said. "Please, amor, for now will you return to the party? It's important to me that you help my friend."

"How will I even know who your 'friend' is?" Amélie replied. "Everyone at the party is in a mask."

"Is yours your mask from when you were in the ballet?" Sombra asked.

Amélie nodded slightly. "It is."

"You'll know my friend," Sombra said, "She'll be the one who looks like she doesn't belong. Her name is Lena."

Amélie nodded then tilted her head slightly and asked carefully, "Is she human? Wait, Lena? Gérard met her a few days ago. He said he was the one who invited her to the masquerade."

"Depends on how you define human," Sombra replied. "Gérard did invite her, but that does not mean that I did not also invite her, just in a different manner. Please go back, she'll be waiting, it's better you find her before he does."

"Before  _who_  does, Sombra?" Amélie asked but Sombra had already started walking away towards the room where Amélie had left her former producer passed out on the bed. "Thanks for being cryptic, Sombra, I appreciate it," she muttered as she turned and headed back to the party. 

She was met by Gérard almost immediately as she walked back into the ballroom.

"Are you alright, my love?" he asked.

"I am, and Sombra is dealing with an unwelcome guest as we speak," Amélie replied. "I have never tasted blood as foul as his."

"Let me know if you start feeling sick, cherie," Gérard replied, "we might be immortal but that doesn't mean we can't get ill from tainted blood. Angela is the only healer I know of that is equipped to treat illness in vampires, and she learned from treating mine."

"I think it's possible he might have just been really drunk," Amélie replied. "He didn't even notice that I've not aged since the last time he saw me, nearly 12 years ago."

"Maybe he just thought you age gracefully?" Gérard asked. "Might I ask, who exactly was that man?"

"Sometimes I forget that we met well after I last saw him," Amélie replied. "He was, might still be, the producer for the ballet company I was with years ago. He took over for a dear friend after that friend fell ill. He fired me because I refused to sleep with him."

"He seemed to not care that you still did not want to sleep with him," Gérard noted. "I would have taken care of him if you'd let me."

"I appreciate that, love, as I know he does not care that I don't wish to sleep with him," Amélie said, "the only reason he didn't force me to do it anyway before he fired me, was because I pulled a sword off a stranger and threatened to cut his face open if he got any closer to me than he was at the time."

"So that's where you got your sword from," Gérard said, sounding rather impressed. 

"Yes," Amélie replied. "The adventurer let me keep it for protection, I paid him two gold coins for it. He said it was only worth one, but I insisted he take both so he could get a better sword."

"Ten years, we've been married and somehow there are still new things to learn about you." Gérard smiled and leaned over to kiss Amélie's cheek gently. He pulled her into a dance gently as he did so, making it less awkward that they were just talking at the edge of the ballroom.

Amélie blushed slightly. She always enjoyed dancing with her husband, he was an incredible dancer who always knew just how to move with her. She'd been with less talented dancers in the past, and it always annoyed her how they seemed to not care about the injuries she'd sustained with the ballet. Assuming, wrongly, that if she'd been a ballet dancer in the past that she would have no preference for what kind of dancing she'd do. 

"Were you aware that Lena is a friend of Sombra's?" she asked quietly as they danced slowly together. "Sombra told me that she invited Lena, then specified that you were the one who invited her to the masquerade, but that she'd also invited Lena. I admit that I don't quite always understand Sombra, but what do you think of this? She said Lena needs me to be at this party."

"It sounds to me like either Sombra's trying to set you up on a date, or Lena might require some kind of help that Sombra thinks you more than anyone else could provide."

"She also said that whether or not Lena is human depends on how you define human," Amélie stated. "I'm concerned about what the girl may be hiding. If she's a young, recently turned vampire, it may explain why she looks like she doesn't have a family. It's possible she killed them all."

"It's also possible that she's a witch like Sombra," Gérard replied. "Love, don't assume the worst. It's possible she may just be in some trouble. If she's not human, then perhaps she's looking for protection from hunters."

Amélie nodded. Despite agreeing with what Gérard was suggesting she couldn't think of a reason why Sombra would assume that she'd help Lena with whatever the problem was, unless the problem was that Lena needed a more experienced vampire to teach her how being a vampire should work. She rested her head on Gérard's shoulder for a moment, tired of thinking so much, and feeling more drained than full from feeding off her former producer. It was an odd feeling, but she was sure she'd get over it soon, she may just need to find someone or something else to feed on as well.

After a moment, she looked up and noticed Lena standing by the snack table looking a little lost, as though she wasn't sure if she was allowed to take some of the snacks or not. Maybe what Lena needed was a friend? Someone who could help her understand all the little rules of society that Lena was missing out on because of her position in it. It took a moment for Amélie to realize Lena wasn't looking at the snacks at all. She was looking around at the guests, seemingly looking for someone.

 _Maybe_ , Amélie realized,  _she's looking for me_.  She stopped Gérard gently as she looked around at the section of crowd that Lena was watching, then looked at the section of crowd behind her, and noticed  _him,_  Siolí in his deer mask, watching Lena. 

"Love," she whispered to Gérard. "I think you may have been right about her needing protection from hunters."

Gérard nodded. "Siolí's been watching her since he arrived."

"I want to believe that it's just because he noticed that I was watching her for a moment, and is curious about her," Amélie stated. "But I'd be wrong."

"Are you going to help her?" Gérard asked. 

"I'm going to dance with her," Amélie replied. "Excuse me."

Gérard nodded and took a small step back from his wife, allowing her to walk over to Lena. 

"I do hope you're enjoying the party," Amélie said to Lena.

Lena jumped slightly then turned to look at Amélie. "Is a nice party," she replied.

Amélie noted with some concern that French was not Lena's first language. This could cause quite a problem, she searched her brain for a moment, trying to place Lena's accent (and name) to a kingdom around here. "You're English?" she asked, switching to that language, and  _hoping_  she wasn't wrong. It would explain why the girl knew any French at all, despite obviously being from not around here. The conquest of her country would have spread the language there.

"I am," Lena replied, in English. 

That settled that much at least, they could understand each other. "Would you care to dance?"

"I'm not a very good dancer," Lena admitted. "Been watching you, you're the best dancer ever."

Amélie held out her hand for Lena. "Let me rephrase it, dance with me, please."

Lena nodded, seemingly afraid of upsetting Amélie. "I will," she said. "But I won't be very good."

"You'll be fine," Amélie replied as she led Lena away from the snack table and onto the floor where she and Gérard had been dancing moments earlier. She started to lead Lena into a slow waltz, but as she started to take the position the musicians began playing the prelude for the Almande. "Actually, you don't know this dance, do you?"

Lena shook her head. "Don't know any dances," she replied. "I can try."

"This is less about dancing and more about talking," Amélie said. "Come with me."

Lena nodded. 

Amélie led her through the crowds of people around the dance floor, to a side door that led out onto a patio overlooking, and leading out to the gardens. 

"Your house is really big," Lena said. "How do you live here and not get lost all the time?"

"I've lived her for ten years," Amélie said. "I did get lost a bit at first, but it's okay now. I'd like to know a little about you, if that's alright."

Lena nodded. "What do you want to know?'

"Let's start with something simple, how do you know Sombra?" Amélie asked.

Lena tilted her head slightly. "I don't know anyone with that name."

"Are you sure?" Amélie asked. "Your name is Lena, right?"

Lena nodded. "It is, can you describe Sombra? Maybe I met her and forgot to ask her name. It happens a lot. It happened right now, I don't know your name."

"My name's Amélie," she replied. "Sombra's a little shorter than me, always wears a black cloak with a skull on it. She's got purple streaks in her hair."

"I  _do_ know her!" Lena exclaimed. "I met her a few weeks ago when I was really lost. She showed up out of nowhere and told me how to find the town. The town where I met the man who invited me here. She told me to ask him if he had anything for me, said he'd know what to do. I'm not sure if it actually worked or not. I'd like to thank him for the bread though, I was very hungry. She also told me that if I got an invitation to a masquerade from him to accept it, that there'd be a beautiful  woman there who would help me." Lena paused for a moment to take a breath and actually pause in her quick-paced rambling. "I think she meant you."

Amélie took a moment to parse all that out before responding. Sombra had invited Lena to town, knowing she'd meet Gérard there, and knowing that if Lena asked Gérard if he had anything for her, he'd invite her to the masquerade. Sombra had told Lena that Amélie would be able to help her. Something had to be very wrong if this girl, who so innocently followed the advice of a witch that had a tendency to appear out of thin air, needed the help of a vampire. 

"What kind of help do you need?" Amélie asked. "My door is open to guests at all times. If it's a place to stay you need--"

"It's not that," Lena said. "Not exactly. It's... not something I can... I... it's hard to explain."

"You're being hunted, aren't you?" Amélie guessed, though it was a well educated guess.

Lena looked down slightly, almost submissively. "Please don't think badly of me for not being a normal person."

"Lena, precious," Amélie said quietly, "if I looked down on every sightly not human person that walked through my door, I'd have never married a vampire. That and half the guests at this party wouldn't be here."

Lena looked up slightly. "You married a vampire?"

"The question is usually, 'did you marry him before or after he turned you'," Amélie said. "Surprisingly, the answer is before."

"Did you know he was a vampire before you married him?" Lena asked.

"Yes," Amélie replied. "I did, I found out about six months before we got married."

"And you still married him?"

"Also yes." Amélie glanced back through the door to see if she could spot Gérard, and she saw him talking to Herr Wilhelm again. "That's him," she pointed at Gérard. "I love him a lot, why wouldn't I marry him? He's given me no reason not to."

"The small one?" Lena asked. "Or the knight?"

"The knight? Herr Wilhelm's a knight?" Amélie replied. "The small one, yes, that's Gérard, my husband."

"That's the man I met in town!" Lena gasped. "Sombra really must have meant you!"

"Sure does look like she meant me," Amélie replied. "She did tell me that you were here and waiting for me. So I must be who she meant. I just can't understand why she thinks you need me.'

"Maybe she thinks you can help me with my hunter problem," Lena suggested. "I haven't seen him but I know he's here. He's everywhere I am."

Amélie nodded. So Lena hadn't noticed Siolí watching her all night. This was bad, if she hasn't seen him then he'd be able to jump her no problem. She wouldn't even know what happened. "If the snake tries any anything tonight I'll kill him."

"You know who how is?" Lena asked incredulously. 

"I have an idea yes, a hunter named Siolí showed up not long after you. It would make sense if it were him. He's a snake."

"Siolí, the greatest hunter, your worst nightmare come to life, do monsters even dream?" Lena said, well to Amélie it sounded more like she was repeating something she'd been told, and it wasn't happily either.

Amélie's concern about the situation only grew at Lena's statement. "if he's the greatest hunter, why are you still alive?" She mused  

"I'm nothing but a game to him," Lena replied. "A toy to be caught, used, then let go so it can all happen again." Lena looked up at the stars. "Sometimes I want to just die, maybe it'll stop the chase."

Amélie started to say something in reply to that, but everything seemed flat, like it wouldn't be enough. "What do you mean by 'a toy to be caught and used?'"

"It means what it... it... I don't know how to explain it," Lena replied. "If you don't already know then you wouldn't understand anyway."

"How can you be sure if you don't even let me try?" Amélie asked. 

"A monster's body is not their own," Lena stated. "Why should it be?"

Amélie bit her lip slightly. There was something to those statements that Lena was trying to get across.. Something that Amélie should be able to understand, but somehow she couldn't, she couldn't understand it, and couldn't figure out what's wrong with the statement. "Lena," she said quietly, "you're not a monster."

"You're wrong," Lena said. "I am a monster. I'm not human; I'm a monster. I have to be. If you say it enough it becomes true. My family is dead because of me. It's my fault. I'm a monster."

Amélie squeezed Lena's hand gently. "You're not a monster, Lena, I promise. Whatever your past, it's just that, the past. It doesn't have to determine who you are."

"You're wrong," Lena stated. "You only believe that because your past is simple, easy. You never caused people to die."

"Lena," Amélie said. "I'm a hunter myself. I've been the cause of many monsters' deaths."

"Then why should I even trust you?" Lena snapped pulling her hand away from Amélie's quickly. "You're a hunter just like him! All trusting you will do is get me killed."

"Lena, I--"

"No!" Lena snapped. "I don't want to hear it. I should have known this was just some kind of trap. Like a fly caught in a spider's web I went right into it." She turned and ran off toward the gardens.

"Lena! Wait!" Amélie called after her, but Lena had already disappeared behind the hedges.

"You'll have to do much better than that," a voice said behind her. "You're a failure as a huntress, Amélie, you never strike when you have the opportunity, and you lose out on some of your would be greatest kills because of it."

"Siolí, I swear if you lay one finger on that girl it'll be the last thing you ever do," Amélie snapped as she turned around to face her former teacher. 

"You can't stop me, Amélie," Siolí replied. "The hunt was over before it even began, and you and she lost. After I'm finished with her, I think I'll take the time to put an end to you  _and_  your vampire husband. Rid the world of two monsters in one night."

"I will be the death of you, Siolí, one way or another you are not hurting her anymore," Amélie snapped. "You're a disgusting person. What the hell have you even been doing to her, she wishes she was dead."

"Ahh, Amélie, I wouldn't think you to be such an innocent thinker," Siolí replied as he walked forward, past Amélie to the steps leading down toward the garden. "Especially not for a vampire with a husband and a lover, a vampire who just drank the blood of a man who tried to do it to you."

Amélie froze for a second. He knew everything. He knew about Sombra, he knew about the producer, he knew she was a vampire, he knew that Gérard was a vampire as well. He knew, and she had no idea that he'd know. He... he just threatened Lena. He just threatened her, and Gérard. He just admitted he had forced Lena to sleep with him She bared her fangs and jumped at him. "Siolí, you monster," she snapped as she  _surprisingly to herself_ caught him off guard and knocked him down the steps to the garden sinking her fangs into his neck as she did so.

Amélie wasn't quite aware of what she was doing, until someone pulled her off Siolí's body, pinning her arms to her sides as they did so. "Let me go," she snapped. "That bastard--"

"Is dead, my love," Gérard said as he pulled her back away from the body. "Herr Wilhelm, I apologize for my wife taking your job from you, but she must have had good reason to kill him."

"The man was a wanted criminal," Herr Wilhelm said, his French still not the best, but he was trying his best it would seem. "He is dead, that's what counts, it matters not who killed him. I will need to take the body back to my country, to assure the king that the man who killed his son is dead." 

Amélie felt Gérard nod at that, despite being unable to see him. "Do you know why he killed the king's son?"

"He claimed the boy to be a monster, a changeling," he stated. "In my country, it is not a killable offense to be a changeling, yet he did so anyway despite the official warning and declaration that if he did so he'd be guilty of murder. The boy was not a changeling, he was just a bit different."

Amélie struggled against her husband's arms. "Let me go so I can kill him again," she snapped.

"Amélie, precious, you know that isn't going to work," Gérard stated, "You can't kill a dead human."

"Then get the witch to bring him back to life so I can kill him again," she snapped. "That bastard forced Lena to have sex with him. He killed innocent people. Killed her family and blamed her for it."

"How did you figure that one out," a small voice replied from a small bush right by the steps. 

Amélie looked around to see who was talking then spotted at the very bottom of the bush, a cat the same shade of brown as Lena's hair. "You said your family was dead, because of you, but you're... you're not the kind of creature that murders. You're sweet, and kind, and trusting, and you don't deserve the things he put you through. You're not a monster, you're just different. Siolí was the real monster in all this."

"I'm a shapeshifter," Lena cat stated. "He killed my family because they wouldn't let him kill me, they didn't want him near me at all. They didn't want him near me before he even learned I'm a shapeshifter. I didn't understand, he seemed really nice at first. I should have listened to my mom. I shouldn't have gone to town alone. I should have stayed home with her."

Lena cat inched her way out from under the bush until she could stand herself up on her paws without getting tangled in the branches. "I've been running from him for most of my life. I remember my parents, life before he got there. I remember that I'm the one who invited him into our house cause it was raining and I thought he needed somewhere to be until it stopped." She looked down at her paws, wrapping her tail around them as she did so. "It's my fault that he was there. For what it's worth, I'm sorry it had to end like this. I should go, I don't want any more hunters to find me."

"Lena, you should stay here with me," Amélie replied, her voice a lot calmer than it had been now that the focus was no longer on the source of her anger. "Please, I owe you that much. You deserve a place to stay, to live where you won't get hurt anymore. It's only right that it be here, Sombra invited you here for a reason, if it wasn't so I'd kill Siolí and save you, it's because you need a home."

Lena cat’s whiskers twitched slightly and she looked up at Amélie. “Are you sure you want me here?”

“Lena, I’m positive I do,” Amélie replied. “Please stay.”

Lena cat sat down and wrapped her tail around her tightly. “I will stay, for the party, and for as long as I feel like staying. I don’t have anywhere else to go. Now, I was promised cake.”

“By whom?” Amélie replied skeptically.

“By the fact that if you don’t give me cake, then I’m leaving to go find some,” Lena replied, her voice playful and her eyes with a certain sparkle in them.

“You’re a scoundrel,” Amélie said.

“Yes, but I’m a cute one,” Lena replied. “Do I get cake?”

Amélie laughed slightly and Gérard _finally_ let her go. “If you’ll shift back into your human form, then yes.”

Lena cat purred happily then stretched herself out before popping up on her back legs and disappearing momentarily in a cloud of brown smoke. When the smoke cleared she was back to her human self, though her mask was gone. “Thank you,” she said, “for everything.”

Amélie nodded. “You’re very welcome, and very beautiful.”


End file.
